West Kensington leases on residential properties are gradually diminishing in value. The shorter the remaining lease term becomes, the less it is worth – and as a result any extension of the lease becomes more expensive. Most owners of residential leasehold property in West Kensington enjoy rights under legislation to extend the terms of their leases. Where you are a leasehold owner in West Kensington you must check if your lease has between 70 and 90 years remaining. In particular once the remaining lease term slips under eighty years, the cost of any lease extension sharply increases as part of the premium you pay is what is known as a marriage value
Leasehold properties in West Kensington with in excess of one hundred years unexpired on the lease are often regarded as a ‘virtual freehold’. This is where the lease is worth the same as a freehold interest in your home. In such situations there is often little to be gained by buying the reversionary interest unless savings on ground rent and maintenance charges merit it.
| Lender | Requirement |
|---|---|
| Accord Mortgages | 85 years from the date of completion of the mortgage. Please ensure that you explain the implications of a short term lease to the borrower. |
| Chelsea Building Society | 85 years from the date of completion of the mortgage. Please ensure that you explain the implications of a short term lease to the borrower. |
| Coventry Building Society | A minimum of 70 years unexpired lease at completion for all scheme types apart from Lifetime Mortgages (Equity Release), which require a minimum unexpired term of 80 years at completion. |
| Halifax | Minimum 70 years from the date of the mortgage. |
| Lloyds TSB Scotland | Minimum 70 years from the date of the mortgage. |
Lease extensions in West Kensington can be a difficult process. We recommend you procure professional help from a conveyancer and valuer with experience in lease extensions.
We provide you with an expert from a selection of lease extension solicitors, which ensures a targeted and efficient service as you have a dedicated port of call with an individual lawyer. Our lease extension solicitors have a wealth of experience procuring West Kensington lease extensions and further afield, as well as any potential issues which may arise as well as problems with the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal.
In 2014 Teddy, came critically near to the eighty-year mark with the lease on his studio apartment in West Kensington. In buying his flat two decades ago, the lease term was of no relevance. As luck would have it, he recognised he would imminently be paying an escalated premium for Extending the lease. Teddy extended the lease just under the wire in April. Teddy and the freeholder via the management company ultimately settled on an amount of £5,000 . If he had missed the deadline, the sum would have escalated by a minimum £1,050.
Mrs B Hill was assigned a lease of a ground floor apartment in West Kensington in July 2012. We are asked if we could approximate the premium would likely be for a 90 year lease extension. Identical flats in West Kensington with 100 year plus lease were valued around £191,400. The mid-range amount of ground rent was £55 invoiced monthly. The lease expired in 2079. Having 54 years left we calculated the premium to the freeholder for the lease extension to be between £34,200 and £39,600 not including fees.
An example of a Lease Extension matter before the tribunal for a West Kensington premises is 93 Oakwood Court in June 2010. the LVT determined that the premium to be paid for the new lease was £492,083, This case affected 1 flat. The unexpired term as at the valuation date was 37.79 years.